Thursday, September 3, 2009

Theme Thursday - Beginning

The end of summer and the onset of autumn usually conjurs thoughts
of death and the closing of a seasonal chapter. But, I've always likened
heavy, ripe, late summer to a woman, ready to give birth. Autumn is
my genesis. Maybe it's because I was born in October, that I am
regenerated in the fall. I consider it to be the start of my year. Fresh,
arctic air breathes new life into my stagnate summer soul. I savor fall;
the cool foggy mornings, the vibrant tones, bursts of crisp, spicy air
through open windows. My zest returns. I can once again think clearly.
I am born again. Ah, soon now.

Genesis



Wrapped
in death clothes
of an August womb

amniotic perspiration
embalms
my ripe
summer corpse

annual gestation
in midwestern sun
cocooned

until autumn genesis
calls this
lazy Lazarus
to be born



willow, 2009

Page copy protected against web site content infringement by Copyscape

photo: red impatiens in my grandmother's iron pot, Sept 2009

90 comments:

  1. Yes, I'm SO in agreement with you, Willow. In autumn, there is a feeling of renewal. It's harvest time. Love your poem! Didn't you say something about a book a while back?

    ReplyDelete
  2. I'm a summer girl...but I will admit that there is something magical about autumn. :) It's always lovely to stroll down the sidewalk among the leaves.

    Love the poem! :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Autumn Always Comes To Me As A Surprise.Yes, Something Languid & Calm.......A Time To Rest & Plan.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Beautiful poem - so rich.

    I am a warmth person but because it is so hot here whether rainy or dry season, I have come to miss the seasons. I loved spring and the beginning of autumn but come November, I wanted to hibernate until the cherry blossom burst forth once again!

    ReplyDelete
  5. What a lovely picture and poem, Willow.

    I've always experienced the calendar year as a "school" year (either as a student, or teacher, or mother of a student) and so September has always represented the Fresh Start and the Year of Being Older. A rebirth of sorts, yes. Today my daughter and I bought her new shoes and school supplies . . .and I bought a moleskin notebook, with a resolution to write every day.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Bee, I don't associate the "fresh start" of autumn with the school year at all. I hated school, having attended seven different schools, always the new kid struggling to find my niche.

    ReplyDelete
  7. What a beautiful photograph Willowy One...a distinct Tuscan feel to it. I love the promise of Autumn after another disappointing English summer. I wouldnt mind if our weather 'guessers' didnt make such lavish promises. Another enjoyable poem too...thank you.

    ReplyDelete
  8. I am in full agreement, Willow. I am also an October baby :) I moved to Florida a few years ago and while I love our weather most of the time, I do miss the cooler autumn tempatures and falling leaves of the Midwest, where I grew up. I put out lots of pumpkins and drape my home in faux autumn leaves from September-November every year to compensate!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Autumn is so wonderful and I so happy I can enjoy it this year! Missed visiting you!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Yup, I'm another one who comes to life in the Fall. Summer kills me (heat and humidity are not my friends), Fall brings me back to life, and I revel in Winter, especially when it snows.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Like Bee, I associate the start of the academic year with renewal rather than decay.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Me, too! Must be our fall birthdays. These past few cool days have made it all the more appealing! And I actually saw a few leaves turning orange in the neighbor's tree today!

    ReplyDelete
  13. hi willow, i'm a leo but i find the summer heat and sun (well not the last two summers) too much for me and i feel like my senses open out in the autumn. it's a kind of awakening. a birth. this was a beautiful post. have a lovely evening at the manor. steven

    ReplyDelete
  14. I'm a Spring girl, but Autumn is my second choice with the crisper air and the changing of the foliage colors. Like your poetry very much keep on writing.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Beautiful words and poem....the leaves are turning here and the nights draw in, jacket and scarf required when out....lovely!!

    ReplyDelete
  16. Willow, I bow to thee m'lady! Well done!

    And saw your comment to Bee; I lost count of all the schools I'd attended and can relate to this, very much so...

    ReplyDelete
  17. Roy, don't get me started on the joys of snow!!

    ReplyDelete
  18. wonderful post...i love autumn...maybe b/c it comes right after my birthday...the walks in the cool air amid forests blazen with color...ahh...lovely poem as well...

    ReplyDelete
  19. I love fall too! The crispness in the air... mmmmm....
    Love the poem!

    ReplyDelete
  20. Willow, I feel the same about autumn being the Genesis. I'm an October child, too. Although where I live now, spring occurs in October, but sometimes, I get lucky with even a freakish snow flurry. Or, a week of cold rain. Either way, it's enough for my Genesis.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Any time can be a beginning but I tend to agree with you that Autumn always seems to be the season of beginning rather than the season of ending.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Autumn is my favourite season. Spring is too "pastel".I am always in love with the colours of Autumn...and the crispness.I really like your poem!

    ReplyDelete
  23. I like your thought of the 'zest' of fall. Perfect. Beautiful photograph.
    Catherine

    ReplyDelete
  24. Amazing post Willow, thanks! I too love the fall. Heck, I love all of the seasons but fall means no bugs!

    ReplyDelete
  25. Another fine poem preceded by thoughts with which I heartily agree. Perhaps a fellow Scorpio?

    ReplyDelete
  26. Hi Marc, no I'm not a Scorpio, although my youngest son is. I'm a Libra!

    ReplyDelete
  27. Great post, Willow! Living in Alabama, it gets pretty hot most days, but when September arrives... the weather starts getting beautiful. Sometimes I miss the fall leaves from New England... but I'll never miss the snow.

    ReplyDelete
  28. You are a true poet, I just play around with rhymes! I am an October birthday person, myself!

    ReplyDelete
  29. I know what you mean about the sense of renewal in fall -- though for me it's linked to that first day of school memory: new notebook, pencils, new classes, teachers, the hope that THIS time I'll get it right . . . and now. fifty some years later, it's also about saying goodbye to the garden -- plowing under the weeds and worms, the bugs and blight for a clean slate and a rest, before another new beginning in Spring. with the hope that in next year's garden I'll finally get it right.

    ReplyDelete
  30. oh, wow! what a beautiful image - and i think a taste of tuscany, too, like one of the readers above - gorgeous - well, second only to your verse - loved it! notwithstanding i'm a true leo - pure to the core - your verse is very persuasive!

    ReplyDelete
  31. I was just this day thinking how much I love this season. It's changing here in Maryland and lately the weather has been blissfully cool and perfect. God, I love fall. I was born this time of year, too.

    ReplyDelete
  32. I'm always ready to be reborn..I so clearly feel your birth in the poem..
    You seem so ready for whatever comes...each season is such a seduction!

    ReplyDelete
  33. I LOVE Autumn yet always mourn the end of summer as well...I am fickle!

    ReplyDelete
  34. Spring is my time for regeneration, but then I was born in April. Coincidence? I don't think so.

    ReplyDelete
  35. Willow,
    Your poem gives a whole new meaning to the end of summer. I have always seen summer as a restful vacationing time and the cool fall weather to be a time of greater activity. My birthday arrives with the new year so that is my regenerating time. I love the weather all year but I hate driving in the freezing rain.
    The picture of your impatiens is very rich and savory.
    Thank you for posting this reflective theme blog.

    ReplyDelete
  36. That is a stunning poem, Willow and really feels like Autumn to me. In Australia we are now in Spring which is a lovely time. My favourite season of them all is Winter. Autumn does have a lovely, reflective, harmonious beat to it however. I love the impatiens image you chose. Thank you also for your kind word's on my grandfather's death. xx

    ReplyDelete
  37. Lovely analogy of Autumnal days Willow. It reminds me of that fascinating word fecund. Not only does it refer to one's state of fertility & ability to reproduce, but the term 'fecundity of the mind' means the intellectual productivity of a creative imagination - & that's exactly what you have!
    Millie ^_^
    P.S. MOTH (Man-of-the-House) thanks you muchly for your warm birthday wishes.

    ReplyDelete
  38. I'm totally summer; water, breezes, sun, long walks. Harvests are good too.

    ReplyDelete
  39. Millie, I thank you with warmest fecundity!

    Thanks for the moth explanation, as well. It puzzled me. :^)

    ReplyDelete
  40. Willow, I love autumn too, but for me it is bittersweet. I'm not sure why. I guess it is because I don't like winter: being cold, the weather (blackberry winters with the gray skies). In fact, I can't think of anything I really like about winter except seeing one snowfall. Only one.

    ReplyDelete
  41. I'm so with you on this!! I love the fall! Colors. Crackling leaves. Anticipation.

    I'm a September baby, as is my firstborn; hubby man is the October baby, as is my last born.

    ReplyDelete
  42. Ditto, Willow. I was a September baby. The leaves and cool weather again. Hooray!

    ReplyDelete
  43. I'm with you...the fall of the leaves begin a rebirth of sorts, both in nature and in the mere mortals. I just wish we were feeling some of that cooler weather. happy early birthday!

    ReplyDelete
  44. "I consider it to be the start of my year."

    I think many do. I still relate it to a new school year. A new beginning. A fresh tablet with a 64 pack of perfect crayons. However, I tend to hang on to summer for as long as I can.

    ReplyDelete
  45. so beautifully put! I feel the same way about the fall

    birth and death two sides of the same coin

    ....geez, and I'm not even an autumn baby

    ReplyDelete
  46. You are absolutely right! The fall brings a new beginning ---enjoy!

    best-c

    ReplyDelete
  47. Ah, the colors of fall. Nature know how to keep our lives vibrant. Planting spring bulbs always give us hope of things to come. Welcome Fall.

    ReplyDelete
  48. I have always loved Autumn too, when the migratory birds are on the wing. However:

    >I've always likened heavy, ripe, late summer to a woman ready to give birth

    we differ here. I liken it to a voluptuous woman ready to make love.

    ReplyDelete
  49. The language of your poem is delicioius and complex... But your prose gives me goosebumps:

    "Fresh, arctic air breathes new life into my stagnate summer soul. I savor fall; the cool foggy mornings, the vibrant tones, bursts of crisp, spicy air
    through open windows. My zest returns."

    Thanks... I love having goosebumps!

    ReplyDelete
  50. "struggling to find my niche"

    I understand that statement in more ways than can be related.

    ReplyDelete
  51. O no! Never ever did I think of death at the beginning of September when the warmth of high summer is still all around us. Even today, after losing my sister one early September morning, do I love and cherish this season without associating it with death. I rather chose to celebrate it for the fulness of life we are gifted with.

    ReplyDelete
  52. That was beautiful Willow!Thank you :)

    ReplyDelete
  53. Gorgeous leaves,cool air,pumpkins,
    spiced tea,a wood fire and a good book! I love Autumn!

    ReplyDelete
  54. well said, both prose and poem. I too feel autumn is a time of renewal and beginnings (October 8th birthday) and October is one of my favorite months for sure.

    ReplyDelete
  55. Autumn is indeed that, jolt I love for beginning...unlike any other season. The equinox giving it a welcome stability. Does that make since? To me.

    ReplyDelete
  56. Having just come out of a chilly frosty winter, I can't wait for October and spring's bloom but I know by December, I'll be feeling exactly the same as you . . my birthday is in October also . .I too attended nine schools before the age of 15! I would so like to see an American fall . .haha I mean Autumn.

    ReplyDelete
  57. Death clothes of an August womb.....what and interesting combination of opposites.

    I love the crisp cool air of fall myself. I too feel invigorated.

    ReplyDelete
  58. Robin, goosebumps??! Thank you so much! I'm stunned. What a fabulous compliment. :^)

    ReplyDelete
  59. Nice post/poem ... when in October is your birthday?

    ReplyDelete
  60. Beautiful poem, Willow.

    Autumn has always been my favorite season. Leaves changing, cool nights, the pumpkin patch, first frost ... there's nothing more beautiful.

    ReplyDelete
  61. I am usually more of a summer girl, but this year I've been in love with the fall. I am feeling it as a kind of quickening, so I really resonated with your poem.

    Beautiful writing!

    ReplyDelete
  62. I adore this post, Willow. In Judaism, autumn brings our harvest holiday, so I've always felt this way too.

    Beautiful, beautiful. I'm all choked up.

    ReplyDelete
  63. You're such an amazing poet, Willow!

    More than one spiritual tradition sees fall as the new year, including we Jewish folk. Beautiful.

    ReplyDelete
  64. Well, would you believe it? We've had our first preview of autumn today and your poem fit like a glove. They always do, don't they. You have a special gift, 'lazy Lazarus' :-).

    Greetings from London.

    ReplyDelete
  65. I too was born in October willow, and I do agree with you. I find Autumn so refreshing and look forward to those winter evenings in front of the fire.

    ReplyDelete
  66. Weaver, I LIVE for winter evenings in front of the fire. I also love to eat Sunday breakfast there.

    ReplyDelete
  67. succulent prose, willow!!! i think of fall as a time of new beginnings rather than an end. back to school always meant buying new school supplies like freshly sharpened pencils. a few additions to the wardrobe are warranted. i love to decorate my house for fall. and, i start to think about christmas preparations. new, alive, exciting!!

    ReplyDelete
  68. Hello Willow,

    Lots of good sounds and unusual use of words here, which your preamble helps clarify for lethargic minds!

    ReplyDelete
  69. After a hot summer, fall is refreshing.
    Nice post.

    Troy

    ReplyDelete
  70. Thanks for stopping and commenting about transportation to school. I laughed...I never went barefoot in the snow but did walk with holes in my clodhoppers and the cardboard mom stuck in there would get wet and by the time i got to school my feet would be wet. And when Miss Brown took my gloves and hung them on the stove to dry, she would hang my wet socks there too. And I walked around barefoot in my clodhopper shoes.

    Autumn is, I have always thought, the promise of spring and rebirth. The seeds are planted in Nature to grow the following spring. So I think of autumn as the sower for tomrrow.

    Every visitor counts, big time...
    Pick a Peck of Pixels

    ReplyDelete
  71. lovely.. pic & poem.

    have a great weekend!!
    -Tracie

    ReplyDelete
  72. Beautiful! For many, autumnal renewal is essential...Thanks for popping over earlier.

    ReplyDelete
  73. I'm a spring kid myself (April) but I can see why you're biased about the fall. Lovely words and painting.

    ReplyDelete
  74. Great post! Autumn is my best time, too! Even tho I was born in March. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  75. I'm definitely a summer sort, I can already feel myself starting to doze off and I won't wake up properly now until about April.

    ReplyDelete
  76. Love your poem--I'm pretty divided between fall & spring, but not a huge fan of high summer or deep winter.

    ReplyDelete
  77. Dear Willow,

    Your poem Genesis, is deeply
    rooted in the earth, visceral,
    and powerful.


    Marie

    ReplyDelete
  78. Although I was also born in October, this subject allways put us on opposite sides, you know that! :-))) Gladly 'my' summer usually goes through October and even so I feel depressed with the upcoming winter... Lol!
    The photo is simply gorgeous!

    ReplyDelete
  79. Wonderful poem Willow. Really, it's very good.

    You Autumn Butterfly you :)

    ReplyDelete
  80. I feel exactly the same way. My birthday, too, is in October. It's my favorite month and I consider it the first month of the year.

    ReplyDelete
  81. I love the change of the seasons. It's one of the things that keep me here in New England

    ReplyDelete
  82. "Lazy Lazurus"--I like the sound of that. Another stellar poem, btw.

    "The end of summer and the onset of autumn usually conjurs thoughts
    of death and the closing of a seasonal chapter."
    --I wholly agree except fr the death bit. No, it's more like"relief!" that the hot days are over although here the summer was in fact rather mild.

    I am so with you on the whole autumnul regeneration thign and I was born in January. Still, I'd take January over mid July heat anyday!

    ReplyDelete
  83. Beautiful Autumn, especially October, also the month of my birth. See you are Libra, me Scorpio.....our time is coming Willow, we will celebrate! Do not despair over age, each October is precious......and I've seen many more than you dear friend! I'm permitted to feel the way you do - you are still too young!

    Happy Autumn - enjoy every day, even when standing at the ironing board (I love that non-chore!).

    Hugs - Mary

    ReplyDelete
  84. That poem painted an absolutely fabulous and vivid picture of the emotions you feel as you step toward Autumn.

    ReplyDelete
  85. I am a Libra, born on Oct 3, a poet for the last 60 years. As I grow older and know that I am running out of birthdays, I try to celebrate them for a longer period of time. Though losing my nursing job of 21 years in massive budget cuts in San Francisco will crimp my style, I fly to Rome on Thursday, meet up with four good friends from various parts of the U. S. We will celebrate my 65th there, sail 6 days in the Mediterranean, spend a night in Malaga, then four in Barcelona. Happy birthday to me....and to you!!!!

    ReplyDelete

Inject a few raisins of conversation into the tasteless dough of existence.
― O. Henry (and me)